Ti Chen @ The Saujana Hotel Kuala Lumpur

November 1, 2012 Choi Yen 19 comments

Read my previous breakfast post HERE or the whole series HERE.

My next breakfast excursion brought me to Ti Chen, the Chinese Restaurant at The Saujana Hotel Kuala Lumpur.

Want some dim sum?

Ti Chen is back to the F & B scene after a massive facelift with its contrasting red and black tones decors and furniture. It has an oriental charm and a sense of tranquility echoed throughout the restaurant.

Traditional red lanterns adorning the ceiling.

Assisting Ti Chen in retaining its stature and reputation are two new chefs, Chef Lai Chong Seng and Dim Sum Chef Yau Kim Yew.

At 39 years of age, Chef Lai Chong Seng with 19 years of experience in Cantonese and Szechuan cuisine alongside magnificent fruit and vegetable carving. After almost 8 very successful years of building his career in the northern states of Penang and Pahang, Chef Lai packed his bags and headed to the northwest coast of Mahe Island, the largest island in Seychelles worked as Chinese Chef at the Le Canton, a niche Chinese restaurant in the middle of Seychelles. 2 years of managing daily kitchen operations, costing and menu in Seychelles, Chef Lai came to a point where he wanted to come home and accepted the position of Chinese Chef at a 5-star hotel in Kuala Lumpur. Little did he know, he once again found himself working overseas in the UAE with the Jumeirah Group LLC at The Noodle House as Chef De Cuisine before returning to Malaysian shores.

Chef Yau Kim Yew is no stranger to this oriental culinary art of dim sum. He has won numerous awards such as The World Golden Chef Competition 2010 -Outstanding Gold Medalist for the Individual Category, The World Golden Chef Competition 2010- Gold Medalist for the Team Category and The World Golden Chef Competition 2010 – Gold Medalist for the Food Presentation category.

Chef Yau brings with him close to 12 years of experience in dim sum making collected 6 full years of making halal dim sum, the young chef is now confident that he can craft a name for the restaurant as the place to come to for delicious and top notch quality dim sum.

Highly stacking dim sum baskets are waiting for me 😛

Ti Chen Prawn Dumplings

I was firstly attracted by the lovely colour of these morsels when I saw someone posted in FB. The naturally coloured (by using beetroot) prawn dumpling or Har Gau is encasing a fresh whole prawn; the taste is as good as it’s look!

Steamed Ebico Siew Mai

When come to pork free dim sum, I always have perspective that they are not impressive as the pork version. However Chef Yau managed to replicate the bouncy and juicy texture of all his dim sums using poultry and seafood with his skills. You won’t believe you are eating a pork free siew mai here!

Steamed Custard Bun with Charcoal

Once again, the chef attract the attention of the customer by using unique colour for his creation. The charcoal powder or activated charcoal to be precise which believe has medicinal benefit was used when making the skin of the bun. The skin was fluffy however the filling of custard was lack of taste, I prefer mine with a little more sweeter.

Steamed Pumpkin Dumpings with Prawns

Impeccable appearance of reddish pocket loaded with delicious prawn filling then crowned with pumpkin cubes which not only prettied up the dumpling but gave it a hint of sweetness.

Baked Charcoal Min Egg Tarts

I really can’t take my eyes off these pleasant looking mini egg tarts in contrasting black and yellow combination! Taste wise and I think the pastry was slightly on the hard side.

Deep Fried Bean Curd Roll with Cheese

Crispy and pipping hot fried bean curd roll with gooey melted cheese hide within, I bet this could be a popular dish for the kids.

Steamed Glutinous Rice with Chicken

The innocuous classic “Loh Mai Gai” managed to wow everyone that day with its audacity in flavors and perfectly steamed glutinous rice, not too hard or mushy. Thumbs up to the chef!

Steamed Noodle Dumpling with Prawns

Thin strands of noodles wrapped up the bouncy prawn paste drenched in a light egg white sauce.

Ti Chen Fried Rice

The fried rice was decent with subtle hint of salted egg.

Steamed Cod with Ginger and Scallion Sauce

Fresh Cod Fish is best steamed for the best original taste and Chef Lai topped it with sauce of concoction of ginger and scallion. I love the green sauce which was not too overwhelming but managed to provide extra zing to the fish. Fabulous!

Beancurd with Crab, Shimeji, Edamame and Pumpkin Sauce

Appeared in cheerful orange-y hue, the house-made tofu was deep fried then topped with fresh crab meat, Shimeji mushroom, edamame and drenched in creamy and sweet pumpkin sauce. Simple but wholesome.

Deep Fried Seafood Roll with Mango

The combination of prawn paste, mango and century egg wrapped with wafer paper the deep fried to the golden brown. All the ingredients gave it a multitude of flavors and textures which was very moreish indeed.